The Digital Economy Is Expected To Reach USD1 Trillion By 2022 And USD1.8 Trillion By 2025, Says IMC – KPMG In India Report

- Industry 4.0: The telecom sector is at the
forefront of Digital revolution, bringing India closer to the trillion dollar
digital dream

- Total subscriber base is expected to reach 1.28
billion in FY22 with significant increase in data consumption which is expected
to reach 7 GB per subscriber per month

In a sign of the
country’s ascendancy and as a testimony to the telecom sector’s blistering pace
of growth, India
became the world’s second-largest telecom market in 2018 with over a billion
subscribers. This has helped in fostering inclusion, driving empowerment and
enabling transformation. With the given trends, the Digital Economy is expected
to cross USD 1 Trillion by FY22, according to COAI’s IMC – KPMG in India report
on ICT and; TMT sector titled “New Digital Horizons – Connect, Create and
innovate”.

The report was launched at the second edition of India Mobile Congress,
the biggest marquee Mobile, Internet and Technology event for South-East Asia,
in the presence of Shri Manoj Sinha, Hon’ble Minister of State (Independent
Charge) for Communications and Minister of State for Railways, Government
of India.

The report
highlighting the detailed trends in ICT sector predicted that mobile data usage
in India,
which is already high, is further expected to surge 5 Times by the 2023. This
will further witness digital diversity in the online audience taking it from
the current 225 million in FY18 to 550 million by FY23.

The near
ubiquitous reach of connectivity, makes the Telecom sector the key enabler to
deliver development to the very last mile through ‘Digital India’ and a ‘Mobile
First’ approach. This report highlights how the New Digital Horizon is
un-folding for India and the
pivotal role that Telecom sector plays in providing India an opportunity to power ahead
of the rest of the world as a digital economy. The report focusses on how the trinity
of regulators, academia and industry can collaborate to CONNECT India, CREATE
an ecosystem for ICT players to thrive to contribute to the growth of digital
India and INNOVATE to bring in faster growth in technology adoption and network
solutions - that will allow for a hitherto unforeseen socio-economic
development for the country.

2

As technologies
have started traversing across industries, business models are going to be
disrupted. KPMG survey also highlighted that media and entertainment, followed
by automotive, retail, FS and education are likely to be disrupted the most. To
remain at the epicenter of this revolution, telecom operators will have to
innovate beyond connectivity. It needs to become the platform to allow the interplay
of these technologies to create digital solutions across varied industries Not
only is the Indian telecom sector furthering the Government’s ambitious Digital
India programme so that it reaches all and sundry, but it is now playing an
instrumental role in bringing in innovative technologies such as 5G, M2M, AI,
AR and VR, which will shape India in the coming times by permeating and
transforming every sector linked to economic development.

The mobile and the
internet have played a decisive role in democratizing technology and
democratizing access to services and use cases, based on these very
technologies.

Although 5G is
likely to be the key enabler of the fourth industrial revolution and an
integrated ecosystem across B2B, B2C, and B2G, till it is launched, the telcos
will have to improve on its existing networks to enhance its performance. To
succeed, they will need to learn new ways of working in the new ecosystem so
that they can accelerate their digital strategies and opportunities, make the
right level of innovation investments, and stay ahead of customer needs.